BANNOCKBURN, IL – North American printed circuit board orders in December grew 33.9% year-over-year, resulting in annual 2017 order growth of 8% compared to 2016. Orders were up 29.1% sequentially, says IPC.

North American PCB shipments in December were up 3.7% compared to the same month the previous year. Shipments ended 2017 down 1.8% compared to 2016. Sequentially, December shipments increased 12%.

Due to a sharp increase in orders in December, the book-to-bill ratio climbed to 1.15. A ratio of more than one suggests current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months.

“Year-over-year sales growth for the North American PCB industry was positive for the fourth consecutive month,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “Better still, strong bookings growth and 11 consecutive months of positive book-to-bill ratios support a rosy outlook for continued sales growth in 2018.”